Abstract [en]

In this chapter, first some basic principles of photolithography and general microfabrication are introduced. These methods have been adapted to fit the microfabrication of conducting polymer actuators, resulting in a toolbox of techniques to engineer microsystems comprising CP microactuators, which will be explained in more detail. CP layers can be patterned using both subtractive and additive techniques to form CP microactuators in a variety of configurations including bulk expansion, bilayer, and trilayer actuators. Methods to integrate CP microactuators into complex microsystems and interfaces to connect them to the outside world are also described. Finally, some specifications, performance, and a short introduction to various applications are presented.